Changing one ball to a strike can completely alter an inning.

Saturday was proof of that, when the New York Yankees used the Automated Ball-Strike System to turn a strikeout into a walk, then went on to score three runs in the top of the sixth against Toronto. The ABS is being tested during major league spring training after years of experiments in the minors.

New York’s Everson Pereira was initially called out on strikes on a full count for what would have been the third out of the sixth. But the call was challenged and changed to a ball, putting Pereira on first.

Spencer Jones then followed with a two-run homer, and two batters later, Ismael Munguia added an RBI triple. The Blue Jays still went on to win 6-4.

“The timing to challenge a close pitch was there, and obviously, he was right and convicted on it,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone told MLB.com. “We’ll continue to gain as much experience with it as we can.”

BREWERS’ PERKINS OUT FOR START OF SEASON >> Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Blake Perkins is expected to miss the first month of the season after fracturing his right shin during batting practice.

Perkins, 28, batted .240 with a .316 on-base percentage, six homers, 43 RBIs and 23 steals in 121 games last season. He also was an NL Gold Glove finalist at center field.

“Perkins is a big part of our team,” Brewers manager Pat Murphy said. “The chemistry of the team, the whole thing, Perk’s huge. He’s one of the most loved guys on the club, and he’s a great defender, coming into his own as an offensive player. Yeah, it’s going to hurt us.”

HEANEY JOINS PIRATES >> Left-hander Andrew Heaney and the Pittsburgh Pirates finalized a $5.25 million, one-year contract.

The 33-year-old is 51-62 with a 4.45 ERA during his 11-year career, mostly with the Los Angeles Angels. Heaney spent the last two seasons with Texas, winning a career-high 10 games in 2023 while helping the Rangers win their first World Series.

Heaney went 5-14 with a 4.28 ERA in 32 games in 2024.

Mets’ Soto hits homer in first at bat for New York >> Juan Soto wasted little time in showing off his power for his new team. Again.

Soto homered in his first spring training at-bat for the New York Mets, hitting a solo shot 426 feet to left-center field in the first inning against Houston. The Mets went on to win 6-2.

Soto also homered last year in his first spring training game with the New York Yankees, belting a three-run shot in the fourth inning of that matchup with Toronto.

White Sox All Star reliever dies at 88 >> Eddie Fisher, the right-hander whose 15-year major league career included an All-Star selection for the Chicago White Sox and a World Series title with Baltimore, has died. He was 88.

Primarily a reliever over the course of his career, Fisher was an All-Star in 1965, when he went 15-7 with a 2.40 ERA and made what was then an American League record of 82 appearances.